1. Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022
Tags: Defence National News
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate India's biggest drone festival-Bharat Drone Mahotsaw 2022 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi on May 27.
The Prime Minister will interact with farmer drone pilots and also witness an open-air drone demonstration.
The 'Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022' is a two-day event being organised on May 27 and 28.
Drones will be showcased by over 70 exhibitors at the exhibition.
Drone pilot certificate, product launch, flight demonstration, demonstration of Made in India drone taxi prototype etc. will be organised in the festival.
Several industry leaders, government officials, foreign diplomats, representatives of public sector entities, private companies and drone startups will participate in the festival.
What is a drone?
Drones are also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or unmanned aircraft.
A drone is a flying robot that can be controlled remotely or can fly independently using software-controlled flight technology in its embedded systems.
It works in conjunction with onboard sensors and a global positioning system (GPS).
Drones first came to the market in the 1990 and were developed by the military.
Drones can be used for surveillance, situational analysis, crime control, VVIP security, disaster management, etc.
It offers benefits to almost every sector of the economy, including national defence, agriculture, law enforcement, and mapping, among others.
The Central Government has approved the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme of Drones and Drone Components.
2. Captain Abhilasha Barak becomes first woman combat pilot in Army
Tags: Defence Person in news
On May 25, Captain Abhilasha Barak from Haryana became the first woman officer to join the Army Aviation Corps as a Combat Aviator.
She was awarded the prestigious wing along with 36 other Army pilots by the Director General of Army Aviation and the Colonel Commandant during a ceremony in Nashik.
About Captain Abhilasha Barak
She is an alumnus of The Lawrence School, Sanawar, Himachal Pradesh.
She completed her B.Tech in Electronics and Communication Engineering from Delhi Technological University in 2016.
She joined his first job in Deloitte, USA.
In 2018, she was inducted into the Indian Army from the Officers Training Academy, Chennai.
While serving with the Corps of Army Air Defence, he was selected by President Ram Nath Kovind as a contingent commander for the presentation of colors for Army Air Defence.
After completing his training from Officers Training Academy, Chennai in 2018, she joined the Army Aviation Corps.
About Army Aviation Corps
Established on 1 November 1986, the Army Aviation Corps was first deployed in Jaffna in 1987 in India's fight against the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) in what is known as 'Operation Pawan'.
This corps flies Chetak and Cheetah helicopters developed by HAL.
Presently, this Corps and its helicopters are serving in high altitude areas like Siachen Glacier.
It is one of the youngest corps of the Indian Army and operates a fleet of helicopters like Chetak, Cheetah, Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH), Dhruv and Rudra.
Apart from attack, these helicopters also play a major role in observation, reconnaissance operations, evacuation of casualties, drop of goods or relief material as well as relief and rescue operations.
3. Indian Navy – Bangladesh Navy Bilateral EX Bongosagar Commences
Tags: International Relations Defence
The third edition of the Indian Navy (IN) - Bangladesh Navy (BN) bilateral exercise 'Bongosagar' began on 24 May 22 at Port Mongla, Bangladesh.
The harbor phase of the exercise is scheduled from 24-25 May followed by a sea phase in the North Bay of Bengal from 26-27 May.
Indian Navy ships Kora, an indigenously built Guided Missile Corvette and Sumedha, an indigenously built offshore patrol vessel, are participating in the exercise.
The Bangladesh Navy is represented by BNS Abu Ubaidah and Ali Haider, both guided missile frigates.
The harbour phase of the exercise
This includes professional and social interactions and friendly sportings, besides strategic level planning discussions on the conduct of exercises at sea.
The sea phase of the exercise
It would facilitate ships from both the navies to participate in intensive surface warfare drills, weapon firing drills, seamanship evolutions and coordinated air operations in a tactical scenario.
About Bongosagar bilateral exercise
Its first edition was held in 2019.
Its aim is to develop interoperability and joint operational skills through the conduct of a wide spectrum of maritime exercises and operations.
4. DRDO And Indian Navy Test-Fire New NASM-SR Missile
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted the maiden flight test of the indigenously developed “Naval Anti-Ship Missile-Short Range" or NASM-SR.
It was launched from Indian Navy helicopter Seaking 42B from DRDO‘s Interim Testing Range, Balasore in Odisha on 18 May 2022.
According to DRDO, the NASM-SR would be a 380 kilogram projectile with a maximum range of 55 kilometres that will be deployed to replace the previous Sea Eagle missiles on Indian Navy Sea King helicopters.
In a tweet, Indian Navy said, this firing is a significant step towards achieving self-reliance in niche missile technology and reaffirms the Indian Navy’s commitment to indigenization.
The Naval Anti-Ship Missile-Short Range has been developed in association with Defence Research and Development Organisation,
It is the first indigenous air-launched Anti-ship missile system for the Indian Navy.
The missile employed many new technologies, including an indigenously developed launcher for the helicopter, state-of-the-art navigation system and integrated avionics.
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO):
It is a premier defence research and development agency under the Ministry of Defence, Government of India.
It aims to make India self-reliant in critical defence technology and systems.
It was set up in 1958.
Headquarters: New Delhi
Chairman: G. Satheesh Reddy
5. Indian Navy dedicated two warships Surat and Udayagiri
The nation witnessed a historic event in the history of the indigenous warship building on May 17, 2022, when two frontline warships of the Indian Navy were commissioned.
These are the warships Surat, which is the destroyer of Project 15B and the other is Udayagiri, which is a frigate of Project 17A.
Both were launched simultaneously at Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) in Mumbai. Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh was the chief guest in both these programs.
The Project 15B class ships are the next generation stealth guided missile destroyers of the Indian Navy, commissioned by Mazagon Docks Ltd. Made in Mumbai.
Destroyer, Surat:
'Surat' is the fourth ship of the Project 15B Destroyer class, which has been developed with several modifications to the P15A (Kolkata class).
It is named after Surat, the commercial capital of Gujarat and the second largest trading centre in western India after Mumbai.
Frigate, Udayagiri:
Udayagiri is named after a mountain range in Andhra Pradesh. This is the third frigate of Project 17A.
Complying with the P17 frigates (Shivalik class), they are equipped with modified stealth characteristics, advanced weapons, sensing equipment and platform management systems. 'Udayagiri' is an incarnation of the old 'Udayagiri', which was a Leander class ASW frigate.
Important Facts:
A total of seven ships are being built under the P17 programme, out of which four are being built at MDL and three at GRSE.
15B and P17A, both ships were indigenously designed at the Directorate of Naval Design (DND).
During the construction activities at the shipyard, about 75 per cent of the orders for equipment and systems were received by indigenous companies, which included micro, small and medium enterprises.
6. Lt Gen Gajendra Joshi takes over as GOC Strike 1
Tags: Defence Person in news
Lieutenant General Gajendra Joshi has taken over the charge of new General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Strike 1 or 1 Corps.
He took over the reins of 1 Corps from Lt Gen MK Katiyar.
Lt Gen Gajendra Joshi had vast operational experience in the form of operations in Sri Lanka during Operation Pawan.
He was actively involved in counter-insurgency operations as a Battalion Commander in South Kashmir and as a Sector Commander in Manipur.
He has commanded a division along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.
His staff experience includes appointments to the General Staff Officer-Grade 1 (Operations) of the Mountain Division, Colonel General Staff (Operations) at Corps Headquarters in the High Altitude Area, Military Operations at Army Headquarters and Deputy Director General of Military Intelligence.
About Strike 1 or 1 Corps
I Corps is a military field formation of the Indian Army.
Its headquarter is in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh.
It was established on 1st April 1965.
It was launched in the Sialkot sector.
The Corps retaliated during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.
In the 1971 war against Pakistan, corps 1 took part in the Battle of Basantar.
Currently it is a 'Strike Corps' within the Indian Army's Central Command.
Central Command headquarters is at Lucknow.
7. Air Marshal Sanjeev Kapoor assumes the Appointment of Director General (Inspection and Safety)
Tags: National Defence Person in news
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Air Marshal Sanjeev Kapoor assumed the appointment of Director General (Inspection and Safety) of Indian Air Force at Air HQ New Delhi on 01 May.
The Air Marshal is a graduate of the National Defence Academy and was commissioned into the Flying Branch of the Indian Air Force in December 1985 as a transport pilot.
He is an alumnus of Defence Services Staff College (DSSC) Wellington, College of Defence Management and National Defence College.
He is a qualified Flight Instructor with over 7700 hours of flying experience on various aircraft in the IAF list.
He has commanded an operational transport squadron and a major transport base.
He is a recipient of Vayu Sena Medal and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal.
8. Indian Coast Guard commissions its second ALH Mk III Squadron in Kochi
Indian Coast Guard chief VS Pathania on May 04, commissioned the second made in India ALH Mk III Squadron at Coast Guard Air Enclave (CGAE) in Kochi.
This is equipped with the indigenously developed Advanced Mark III (ALH Mark III) helicopters.
The second squadron of ALH Mk III choppers aims to boost the security of the western seaboard further and enhance India’s rescue capability.
The commissioning is a tremendous leap towards self-reliance in the field of search and rescue operations and long range maritime surveillance.
The indigenously developed ALH Mk-III helicopters are fitted with an array of state-of-the-art sensors that enhance the maritime prowess of the Coast Guard.
Four helicopters have been deployed in Kochi to cover the entire coast of Karnataka, Kerala and Lakshadweep.
The Squadron, led by Commandant Kunal Naik has nine officers and 35 men.
TLMC conference
The Coast Guard Headquarters-4 (Kerala and Mahe) at Fort Kochi organised the annual Technical and Logistics Management Committee Conference.
Coast Guard Commander (Western Seaboard) and senior officials are attending the conference.
Director General VS. Pathania inaugurated the conference and acknowledged the force's collective efforts to maintain a fleet of 256 ships and aircraft.
9. France pulls out from India's P-75I Project
Tags: National International Relations Defence
Ahead of Modi's scheduled visit to France, French defence major Naval Group has announced that it is unable to participate in the P-75 India (P-75I) project, which seeks to build six conventional submarines in India for the Indian Navy.
Why did France pull out?
The French firm pulled out of the project as it could not fulfil the conditions of the Request for Proposal (RFI) placed by the Indian Navy.
Request for Proposal (RFP) requires that the fuel cell be AIP Sea Proven, which is difficult for India as the French Navy does not use such a propulsion system.
AIP refers to Air-Independent Propulsion.
AIP technology allows a conventional submarine to remain submerged for much longer than ordinary diesel-electric submarines.
India wants AIP technology as none of its existing ships have it while Pakistan and China both have AIP-equipped submarines.
What is Project 75?
In June 1999, the Cabinet Committee on Security had approved a plan for the Indian Navy to indigenously build submarines by 2030.
Under the first phase of the P-75 in 2005, India and France signed a $3.75 billion contract to build six Scorpene-class submarines.
The executing company on the Indian side was Mazagon Docks Limited, and on the French side was DCNS, now called Naval Group.
The first submarine under the project was commissioned in December 2017.
Thereafter, another five were built and on 20 April, INS Vagsheer was launched which will be commissioned by 2023.
What is P-75I?
The Project 75I-class submarine is a follow-up to the Project 75 Kalvari-class submarine for the Indian Navy.
In the late 1990s, at the time of the Kargil War, a three-decade plan for indigenous construction of submarines took shape.
This is known as Project 75 and Project 75I, two separate series of submarine building lines in collaboration with foreign entities.
Under this project, the Indian Navy intends to acquire six diesel-electric submarines, which will also include advanced air-independent propulsion systems.
10. DRDO successfully test-fired Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System
Tags: National Defence Science and Technology
The longest range indigenous artillery gun i.e. 155mm/52 Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) was successfully test fired at Jaisalmer's Pokhran Firing Range (PFFR) from 26 April to 2 May 2022.
What is ATAGS ?
The Advanced Artillery Gun System Project is a modern 155 mm artillery gun developed by DRDO.
This gun is manufactured by Bharat Forge and Tata Advanced Systems Limited.
It weighs 18 tonnes and has a firing range of 48 km.
The 155mm ATAGS developed by DRDO was first fired in 2016.
It took almost four years to develop the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System, the Indian Army currently has seven Advanced Towed Artillery Guns available.
